“ Look around Zhiyu , how do you expect me to tell him to stop ? ”
This was the first time Yang Chantian came to the mountain alone. He half expected Jingyou to pop out from the cave. He really wished that all of this was just a dream. He closed his eyes . And pinched himself , wishing so hard that he was just stuck in a dream, and when he opened his eyes , everything would be back to normal. He believed that once he opened his eyes , Hei Jingyou would be standing next to him , carrying a bag full of lotus mooncakes. They were his favorite. He loved them so much that Hei Jingyou would make them for him a lot. Whenever she visited him , or when he visited her . She would always have some on her. The lotus filling of the mooncakes were made from the lotus seeds from the lotus she herself grows in her backyard pond.
Those lotuses looked different from the normal lotuses , so they always piqued Yang Changtian’s curiosity. They looked bigger than the average lotus , and their petals had a slight blue hue to them. At dusk the lotuses look completely blue , giving them a melancholic yet ethereal appearance.
Him reminiscing about the lotuses reminds him, he pulled out a gold lotus embedded with blue stones , a lapel pin Hei Jingyou used to wear. He ran his fingers through the deep blue stones with specks of purple and pink. What really happened, Jingyou ? I feel it in my soul that you're alive. But why did your spirit lamp get extinguished, in Uncle Sun okay too ?
He closed his eyes and released a breath that he didn't even realize that he was holding. He put the lotus pin back into his lapel. He lifted his head and looked far into the horizon. A wind blew , his robes flowing with it .
“ Jingyou , I was serious when I casted the unbreakable promise talisman. I swear I will find you and if by any chance , heaven is cruel and you’re dead , I will get your core or body back. Till I find them , I’m alive.” Yang Changtian whispered , his words carrying away with the wind.
Back in the present , Yang Changtian was feeling shocked. “ I never thought they’d agree to help me , I still remember how Baihua looked at me when she learned about the truth. She was crushed .” Yang Changtian said softly , his voice barely audible.
Master Long approached his dearest disciple and patted him on the shoulder.
“ Go get some rest now Changtian, tomorrow , remember to go meet his Royal Highness Prince Jinlong before setting out , he said he wanted to give something to you.”
“ Understood master , I’ll go seek an audience with Prince Jinlong , early tomorrow. I request permission to take my leave master.” Yang Changtian bowed towards master Long and after master Long gave him permission , he turned around and walked out.
Yang Changtian, walked through the building of his sect, past the main hall , memorial hall , training ground , and soon he reached his personal courtyard. Initially he occupied the courtyard given to the chief disciple , which was adjacent to Master Long’s courtyard. But a few years back he felt that his quarters were extremely cramped . So he decided to move into an old courtyard that had not been used for some time. It borders a forest and small lake filled with lotuses, and has a relatively large area. When he moved in Yang Changtian cleaned up the garden and he asked his junior sister to help him with planting the garden. Now he boasts a garden filled with gardenias and roses. A group of ancient camellia shrubs border the pathway from the house to the lake. And on the lake , there was a floating pavilion. Yang Changtian liked to sit there admiring the sunset with a drink. The house was decorated simply , and had a bedroom , library and study , a small kitchen and a personal training ground. Yang Changtian was always someone who enjoyed the hustle and bustle of the people , but now that he’s older he understands why some people prefer to be more reserved .
He enters his yard , before locking the gate behind him. He removes his shoes before opening the door to his bedroom. After getting refreshed , he lay down on his bed and soon the exhaustion of the day caught up with him.
The songs of the birds chirping , reminded him that she should wake up now. He got up and took a shower, before changing into his clothes. He heard a knock on his door , it must be Zhang Anying, he thought. When he went to open the door ,he was surprised to see Prince Jinlong standing there with his guard standing behind him. “Prince Jinlong you didn't have to come all the way here , I was just getting ready to go meet you.”
“ That isn't needed Changtian , you're already doing me a huge favour and the least I could do is come meet you myself. I need to talk with you.”
“ Sure your highness , let’s head into the pavilion , it has more privacy.”
“ Lead the way.”
Yang Changtian led Wang Jinlong and his guard along the camellia lined path and soon they reached the pavilion .
“ You really did a good job renovating this place.” exclaimed Prince Jinlong , looking around in mild surprise. “ It’s surprising because I would've expected something like this from Jingyoiu , not you.” Yang Changtian nodded his head , “ I guess she impacted my preferences without me noticing, too 'cause if you told me that i would prefer a quiet place like this over a bustling and lively place a few years before , I would think you're crazy.”
Prince Jinlong gave out a laugh , and nodded in agreement.
“I heard your highness wanted to give me something ?”
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“ Ahh…. that’s why I’m here. A few days while sorting through the imperial archives , I came across this.” The guard handed a scroll to the prince. The Prince unrolled it and it was a painting of a beautiful lady. Her dark hair was curly , framing her face. Her eyes looked very feline , with deep pitch black pupils. Yang Changtian reached out to touch the painting's eyes.” The eyes….”
“ Familiar right , this is the portrait belonging to the head lady of the Hei Family.” replied Wang Jinlong observing Yang Changtian’s reaction closely.
A look of surprise and disbelief flashed across Yang Changtian’s eyes, “ That means….”
“ Yes, that is Jingyou’s mother. While we have never seen Jingyou’s face before , it's safe to say that she might look similar to her mother. Keep it , I already had the royal painters paint a copy. And it’ll help greatly in your search”
Yang Changtian was feeling 2 conflicting emotions at once. On one hand he was happy because he finally had an idea about what Jingyou looked like. On the other hand , he was sad because after all these years he only got a potential glimpse of what Jingyou might look like from a painting of her mom.
“ She has curly hair too.” Yang Changtian replied. “ She also has the same black feline eyes.”
“ Yes , they’re certainly more exotic and rare features. No mistake in them being related.” Wang Jinlong said, shaking his head slightly .
Yang Changitan agreed while still looking at the painting. After some time he stood up and bowed towards Prince Jinlong . “ Thank you , your highness. I will never forget your kindness.”
Wang Jinlong hurriedly stood up , “ Stop this nonsense Changtian , we’ve been friends for ages , don't act so distant , besides Jingyou is my friend too. This is the least I can do for her. “ Wang Jinlong closed his eyes and shook his head. “ I really felt useless , i couldnt help you nor her , while you two have been helping me out my whole life, you’re even helping me right now by going to investigate. So Yang Changtian , don't thank me , it's the least I could do.”
“ You’re highness , as your subordinates and your friends of course we’ll help you, you don't need to thank us for this. Now I request your permission to excuse myself, your highness, it's almost time for me to set off.”
“ Go ahead Changtian, I bid you a safe journey.”
Yang Changtian bowed towards the prince and nodded towards the body guard before turning around to leave. He was halfway down the road when he heard Wang Jinlong call his name.
“ Changtian ! If she's still alive …..You'll find her right ? “. Wang Jinlong’s eyes misting up , likely from reminiscing about their childhood.
Yang Changtian smiled at him slightly, “ Even if I have to die, your highness ,and if she’s no longer alive , I will search for her remains. I will bring her back home .Then i wont see your highness out”
Wang Jinlong smiled softly and nodded.
Yang Changtian turned and continued on his way.
Wang Jinlong turned and sat down . He turned to his guard. “ No one’s here now Zhiyu , come and sit down.”
Lan Zhiyu has been with Wang Jinlong since he was young , naturally he was familiar with Hei Jingyou and Changtian. Wang Jinlong and Yang Changtian were always rowdy and reckless, they ended up getting into trouble since young. And Hei Jingyou was the exact opposite , she was quiet and calm , preferring to keep to herself. She maintained a strict and busy schedule, but she always had time for them. Whenever she visited , she would bring some snacks for them. She even gave them to him.
“ Yes, master, “ replied Lan Zhiyu before moving closer and sitting down. He pulled a bottle out and used the tea cups in the center of the table to serve his master some tea. The cups white with simple black paint strokes. Wang Jinlong drank the tea and he was looking at the cup curiously “ Master , do you really think she’s still alive ? “.
Wang Jinlong closed his eyes , after a while he reopened them , they were misty. “ I really want her to be alive. But I don't think she’s alive. But I know Yang Changtian won't stop, I can't bear to make him stop either. Look around Zhiyu , you’ve known them since they were young too. This whole place is obviously filled with the things she loved, and the whole building and even this pavilion is furnished according to her tastes. Yang Changtian loves flashy and lively things, yet here he is living in this isolated and peaceful courtyard. He clearly feels some strong emotions towards Jingyou, but I don't think they're simply what you would feel towards a friend, so how can I bear to tell him that she’s probably dead.”
Lan Zhiyu nodded in agreement. And he looked towards the lotuses blooming in the lake. “ I really hope she’s alive too. When we were younger , when you and Changtian ran off and didn't come back after sun down, your father almost punished me. He wanted to strike me with the paddle for my negligence , but right before the paddle made contact with my skin, she stopped the servant and saved me. I always thought that she's someone cold and emotionless , but I realized how wrong I was at that moment. She managed to appease your father.”
Wang Jinlong was surprised since he did not know that his father wanted to punish Zhiyu for his mess and he also didn't know that Jingyou saved Zhiyu. “ Why didn't you tell me this before? I would understand Jingyou not telling me because she’s always been the type to keep to herself. But why didn't you tell me ?”
“ I didn't want you to feel bad, master. You were already crying because you disturbed the whole mansion and Jingyou.”
“ So what happened after , father didn't punish you right ? “
“ No , Jingyou managed to get your father to go comfort your mother ,and after coming back she approached me and asked me if I was hurt. She then gave me some lotus pastries and wild berry candy , before asking me if I could help her find you 2. Naturally I agreed, then we spent the next 5 hours looking for you 2 .” a small smile grazed Lan Zhiyu’s lips. “ We found you 2 asleep at the Temple of the Moon goddess. I’m still surprised , you 3 are the same age , yet you 2 act like little toddlers while she was so mature, if i didnt know better i would’ve thought she was older than me too.” Lan Zhiyu was chuckling while reminiscing , “ She then sent out a fire signal , alerting the others of your location. You two were so deep in sleep that you never even roused in your sleep. And we couldn't carry you two back either so we waited till someone came to get us. While waiting she pulled out a blanket and covered you 2 with it. And she pulled out a bag of nuts and handed me some. I wanted to refuse so I started by addressing her formally, but before I could resume , she told me to just call her Jingyou. Then she told me to eat some nuts since I must've ran around a lot looking for you.That’s when I realized that she was just misunderstood. She was the first person , excluding you, to treat me like a person.”
Wang Jinlong moved his eyes away from Lan Zhuyi and also gazed at the lotuses. “ True , Jingyou was someone who didn't care about your background or your status, she treated everyone equally, and while she liked to keep to herself , she was very kind. Me and Changtian always used to joke around that while her outer body was young , her soul was that of an old maiden , well in her 60’s ”
Lan Zhiyu nodded in agreement, chuckling , his smile faded off, “ Master, I really hope that she's alive. She was a really good person”
Wang Jinlong sighed before moving his eyes away from the lotuses back to his guard and friend’s face. “ I do too, Zhiyu. But we can only hope for good news. Let’s go back now, we’ve overstayed our welcome already.”